Allardyce and Lee will prepare for the Merseyside derby rather than go to CyprusLEE SMITH/ACTION IMAGES/REUTERS

Sam Allardyce will not travel for Everton’s Europa League dead rubber with Apollon Limassol tomorrow and remain on Merseyside to focus on preparations for Sunday’s derby against Liverpool.

Allardyce will instead send his assistant, Craig Shakespeare, and Duncan Ferguson, the first-team coach, to Cyprus to manage a very inexperienced squad.

Everton are out of the competition after a winless campaign and Allardyce has deemed that his time, and that of Sammy Lee, the assistant manager, will be better served coming up with a blueprint for his first trip to Anfield as Everton manager.

The majority of the first-team squad will remain in England, with Allardyce having already warned the club’s supporters that he would be sending a shadow side to face Limassol.

Allardyce, whose first…

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